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ORDER OF ADJECTIVES IN ENGLISH
Disclaimer: This post may have affiliate links, if you click on these links and make a purchase I may get a small commission, which is of course at no additional cost to you.
Now the first thing I want you all to note is that this is just one of the variations of the order of adjectives in English, some things are facts but some can be moved around a little. Here I listed one of the most common orders and I would suggest you take the time to learn and know them.
Why is this order of adjectives in English used?
Remember that word placement in English can make a world of difference.
She is a responsible person.... ( a responsible person means a person who is reliable and takes ownership of their behavior)
She is the person responsible... ( this is the person who caused something to happen)
Determiner
In writing your sentences your determiners can be your articles and numbers.
Here are some examples:
a, an, the, some, few, any, several, this, mine, him, his, hers, their, our, those, these, my, yours, its, thirty-five, ten, fifty, much, many, a lot of, a little, enough
Quality/Opinion
When it comes on to quality and opinion it has to do with your thoughts, or what you think about something.
Here are some examples:
Cute, sexy, tasty, boring, important, ugly, good, great, amazing, lovely, awful, strange, disturbing, annoying, enticing, jealous, loving
Size
When you talk about the size of something you are making reference to how big or small something may be, you also take the height into consideration.
Here are examples:
tall, huge, big, little, short, enormous, immense, large, gigantic, mini, epic, minute, compact, microscopic, vast, colossal, long
Age
Of course next in the order of adjectives in English is age. This tells how old something may be or even how young.
Here are some examples:
old, young, youthful, elderly, ancient, twenty-year-old, antique, aged
Shape
The shape has to do with the outward appearance
Here are some examples:
circular, round, triangular, square, flat, oval, pointy, irregular
Color
Now this one speaks for itself.
Here are some examples:
red, blue, yellow, green, purple, orange
Origin
Origin has to do with where something comes from, and where it originated.
Here are some examples:
American, Jamaican, Chinese, Guyanese, Brazilian, German, Mexican
Material
Material really just has to do with an item and what was used to make it.
Here are some examples:
Plastic, polyester, wool, metal, cotton, steel, wood
Purpose
When you hear the word purpose it just means what the item is used for.
Here are some examples:
sleeping (sleeping bag), rocking (rocking chair), running (running shoes), wedding (wedding dress)
EXAMPLE SENTENCES
She had a small, red, wool sweater.
I went to the supermarket and met an amazing, tall, young American boy.
TIPS TO REMEMBER THE ORDER
There are different strategies you can use to remember them, I personally recommend a pseudonym (which is really just a fictitious name) and making a sentence with words starting with the same letters as the adjective order.
Determiner - Don
Opinion - Ordered
Size - Something
Age - After
Shape - Seeing
Color - Chris
Original - Open
Material - Multiple
Purpose - Packages
Don ordered multiple packages after seeing Chris open multiple packages.
This is just an example, you can create your own to help you to remember the order of adjectives in English.
TRY THIS EXERCISE
You can check out this post on Parts of Speech in English.
Also, don't forget the Your Jamaican Dose English Podcast and come say hi on Instagram.
Monifa G.
A Jamaica ESL Instructor since 2016 who has so much passion and love for it.